David Stewart Mcgregor

Lieutenant, 6th Battalion. Royal Scots* Also 29th Battalion

Register No.: 781 (Alf's numbering, from The Register of the Victoria Cross, 1997)
Rank: Lieutenant all Lieutenants →
Unit: 6th Battalion. Royal Scots* Also 29th Battalion (register: Royal Scots (Lothian Regiment)) all Royal Scots (Lothian Regiment) VCs →
Date of action: 22 October 1918 on this day → all of 1918 →
Conflict / campaign: First World War
London Gazette: 14th December, 1918 on this day → all of 1918 →
Died: in action on the 22nd October, 1918 at Hoogemolen, Belgium
Memorial / grave: at Staceghem Communal Cemetery, Belgium

Digest of citation

At Hoogemolen, Belgium, on the 22nd October 1918, Lieutenant MacGregor was in command of a section of machine guns attached to the right flank of the assaulting Battalion. He concealed his gun's, on a limber, under the bank of a sunken road, but immediately the troops advanced they were subjected to enfilade fire from enemy machine guns. He realised that he could not get the guns carried forward without some delay. He ordered the teams to take a safer route, whilst he lay flat on the limber. The driver then galloped forward, for about 600 yards, under extremely heavy machine-gun fire. The driver, the horses and the limber were all hit. Lieutenant MacGregor succeeded, after getting the guns into action, in effectively subduing the enemy fire, allowing the advance to continue. In order to direct the fire of his gun's, he continually exposed himself, to the enemy. He worked like this for about an hour, until he was killed

From Alf Askin's research notes

Reproduced as Alf wrote it, c. 2000–2005. Spelling and abbreviations are his own.

McGREGOR, David Stewart. (reg No. 781).

Lieutenant. 6th Battalion. Royal Scots* Also 29th Battalion. Machine Gun Corps London Gazetted on 14th December, 1918.

Born the 16th October, 1895 at Edinburgh, Scotland.

Killed in action on the 22nd October, 1918 at Hoogemolen, Belgium.

Memorial on grave at Staceghem Communal Cemetery, Belgium.

Digest of Citation reads: At Hoogemolen, Belgium, on the 22nd October 1918, Lieutenant MacGregor was in command of a section of machine guns attached to the right flank of the assaulting Battalion. He concealed his gun's, on a limber, under the bank of a sunken road, but immediately the troops advanced they were subjected to enfilade fire from enemy machine guns. He realised that he could not get the guns carried forward without some delay. He ordered the teams to take a safer route, whilst he lay flat on the limber. The driver then galloped forward, for about 600 yards, under extremely heavy machine-gun fire. The driver, the horses and the limber were all hit. Lieutenant MacGregor succeeded, after getting the guns into action, in effectively subduing the enemy fire, allowing the advance to continue. In order to direct the fire of his gun's, he continually exposed himself, to the enemy. He worked like this for about an hour, until he was killed.

Machine Gun Corps
Born the 16th October, 1895 at Edinburgh, Scotland.

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Alf recorded the memorial as: at Staceghem Communal Cemetery, Belgium

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